The Toronto Star
Although political candidates are promising jobs, parents cannot work without child care. Tens of thousands of families are on waiting lists for licensed child-care spaces and subsidies across Ontario. The early childhood community stresses for party leaders to promise early childhood educators wage increases and to make an emergency investment of $300 million to prevent more child care centres from closing. The Liberal government promises to reintroduce the Child Care Modernization Act and increase ECE wages by $2/h if re-elected. Tory Leader Tim Hudak says he won’t announce any new spending and that includes no more money for child care. NDP Leader Andrea Horwath, who said she will have more to say about child care later in the campaign, noted the party pushed for the extra $250 million for child care that became part of the minority Liberal government’s 2012 budget.